Adieu Baker’s: One of Seattle’s oldest restaurants closes

Many customers were surprised to hear the news. Most didn’t know the building was for sale. I had heard rumors but my questions were always cheerfully deflected whenever I asked about it.

According to a Seattle Times article, the owners plan to continue their wholesale candy wholesale out of the building’s basement. A Chinese-American restaurant will supposedly be operating upstairs.

Baker’s was one of the original, old-time Seattle businesses. Ernie and Barbara Baker started the company at Pike Place Market in 1920 as a candy operation. Then they relocated the business to Lake City in 1946 and renamed it Baker’s Restaurant and Sweet Parlor. On any given day, one could expect to see their daughter Nancy Prevele running around taking orders and serving coffee.

According to the property listing on the Commercial Broker’s Association, the building that houses Baker’s is pending sale to a new owner. The listing described the property as a “great opportunity in the path of upscale development.”

Whenever I hear the words “great opportunity,” it usually means one thing: new development.

I suspect the building, built in 1946, will be replaced in due time.

Meanwhile, Lake City has lost one of its most cherished local establishments. Baker’s will be missed by many.